After two and a half years of trying to work from home, I couldn’t take it anymore. I’m an extrovert and like being around other people, so the minute a coworking space opened five minutes away from my house I was signing a contract.
However, there is a reality I have to deal with that means I can’t work from my coworking space all the time. Sometimes I wake up late. Sometimes my family needs me to help out. Sometimes I just don’t make it there for whatever reason. Heck, I don’t even bother going in on Fridays because there’s usually no one there.
The question then becomes, how can I actually work from home when I’ve started hating working from home? Here’s what I’ve come up with.
Treat it like a regular work day.
When it comes to actually working from home, the key for me is to treat it like a regular work day. That means that if I’m usually at the office working by 10 a.m. then I’m doing the same thing at home.
I try my best to not change anything about my routine just because I decided to work from home that day. That means I’m also meal planning and doing my personal stuff on weekends just like I would if I was going to the office all week. I even give myself a lunch hour and stick to it.
Change your scenery.
Another thing that helps me actually work from home is to change my scenery. In my case, this looks like working from the back porch if the weather is nice. That’s actually where I am right now as I get some client work done.
Sometimes a simply shift like that helps me focus and get something done because I’m not actually inside the house. And besides, we can all use a little Vitamin D now and again.
Teach people how to treat you.
The biggest complaint I hear from people who try to work from home is that their family or roommates don’t respect the fact that they are working. Boy, do I get that!
The only thing you can do here is to teach people how to treat you. It may look like any of the following:
- Telling the people you live with what your schedule is so they know what to expect.
- Having a separate space in the house where you work.
- Simply asking them to respect you and your work.
- Don’t pick up the phone when they are blowing it up (unless you have the feeling it’s an emergency).
All of these may take a few tries, so don’t expect it to work miracles overnight. However, with time, the people you live with start to get it.
Kids are a different story entirely. Seeing as how I’m not a parent I can’t really help you there. However, plenty of our writers do have kids and have pearls of wisdom for you.
Final Thoughts
Some people thrive when they work from home while others would rather do anything but work from home. Some people, like me, waver in between the two depending on their mood. The key is to know what to do on those days when you do decide to work from home, and these tips can help you figure that out.
